By admin 
MONTICELLO — Matt Swartz set the lead. Hunter Romano made first contact.
A large number of Monticello defenders soon swarmed Benton quarterback Tiffin Kouzoukas, as Kouzoukas tried to reach the end zone two yards away with his legs. But Monticello’s defense held firm. And then persevered.
“It was crazy,” Monticello linebacker Koyie Williams said. “We just filled it.”
Yes, they did. And because of its late-game defensive play that denied Kouzoukas a two-point conversion, Monticello is one win away from reaching the Class 3A state championship game following its dramatic 27-26 victory against Benton on Saturday afternoon in the 3A state quarterfinals .
The Sages (10-2) never trailed against the Rangers (8-4), but the home fans couldn’t help but feel a little nervous when Kouzoukas pulled off his final shot on Saturday. Monticello led 14-0 at the end of the first quarter and 20-9 within the first 10 seconds of the fourth quarter before Benton outscored the Wise the rest of the quarter to force overtime when Jesser Zepeda hit a field goal from Made 27 meters with 20 points. Just a few seconds left to tie the game at 20.
“I don’t know if there were times we could have played worse or if there were times I could have coached worse,” Monticello coach Cully Welter said. “I give credit to Benton. When things weren’t going well, they came back and gave us all kinds of things that caused us problems. We got through it. That’s all I care about right now.’
Monticello stays home for the state semifinals and hosts near foe Unity (9-3) next Saturday at 2 p.m. The two Illini Prairie Conference foes met on Oct. 25 at Hicks Field in Tolono, with Unity cruising to a 42-28 win.
However, the rematch will have a different feel and implications. Win and advance to the 3A state championship game on Nov. 29 in Normal. Lose and the season ends.
What Monticello almost experienced against Benton on Saturday.
“Emotions are high right now,” Monticello quarterback and free safety Ike Young said. “I don’t really know what to think. Another bad game, that’s the end of my season. If you win and move on, we’ll get the win, but we have to get better next week.”
Benton won the toss before overtime began and elected to have Monticello start with the ball on the 10-yard line, needing four downs to score a touchdown or kick a field goal. A 9-yard run by Nolan Buenhnerkemper during the Sages’ first overtime put the ball at the 1-yard line, but Benton stopped Young on two consecutive runs to set up a fourth-and-goal.
Where Young threw a pass into the end zone that pulled down a wide open Carter Foran for a 1-yard touchdown catch. Buehnerkemper’s extra point pushed the Wise Men’s lead to 27-20.
“It was supposed to be for our H-back in the condo, but something went wrong,” Young said. “I looked and found the open receiver.”
Benton didn’t waste much time finding the end zone on his only offensive possession in overtime, with Kouzoukas scoring on a 7-yard run and setting up the Rangers’ decision to attempt a two-point conversion to go for the win.
The Monticello defense that didn’t allow a touchdown and intercepted two passes in the first half didn’t look like the same group for much of the second half. Kouzoukas was a big reason for this, as he finished with 158 rushing yards on 31 carries and two touchdowns, while completing 19 of 29 passes for 239 yards and a touchdown. His 37-yard touchdown pass to AJ Craven and subsequent two-point conversion run with 9:18 left in the fourth quarter cut Monticello’s lead to 20-17.
Early on, it looked like Monticello would win handily. Young unleashed his strong throwing arm by hitting Carter Foran on an 84-yard touchdown pass just 88 seconds into the game.
Cully Welter
I don’t know if we could have played worse at times and whether I could have coached worse at times. I gave Benton credit. When things didn’t go well, they came back and gave us all kinds of things that caused us problems. We got through it. That’s all I care about right now.
I am always proud of our children. We didn’t play well. It starts with me, but it’s great to be with them and it will be great to be with them for another week.
On Unity
It doesn’t matter to me at this point. We are currently in the semi-finals. I’m quite happy. It will be great to be here. We have the utmost respect for Unity. It will be a huge mountain to climb, but we are just excited. We’re ready to go.
On the defensive
We struggled on both sides of the ball, but when we needed to, we made big turnovers and got the big stop at the end. I’m very proud of how our defense did. They have done very well all year. Today we just survived, and that’s about all I can say.
On the attack
We were confused all day. I love our kids, but we just weren’t in sync. When that touchdown came back, unfortunately, it was a turning point.
On Benton
They are on a huge trajectory. Midway through the season they had some turnover issues and some injury issues. They are a physical team and they are well coached. They gave us fits.
Mason High
We knew they would try to run it. We gave everything we had. Our whole lives came down to that moment, and we had to stuff it. It feels great. I was about to burst into tears if we lost that game. This is currently a top five moment in my life.
We have 18 seniors, so we have strong leadership. Even when big plays were happening, we stayed calm and level-headed. It was on to the next play. That’s what we needed.
On Unity
I have a feeling it’s going to be okay. I’m glad we still have a chance against them. It’s a good team, so we have to be prepared.
I have no idea.
Koie Williams
Just endure. I trust all those guys out there. They’re my boys, and we all felt confident that we had that.
Don’t know. It was a bunch of guys. It was insane. We filled it. Our defense has been working on it all year. We drilled it out and ground it out. It was great.
WE are all very close. I would consider us all brothers, and we are all there for each other. We were just flying around.
On Unity
It’s going to be great. I can’t wait for it. It’s going to be a fun one.
Matt Swartz
It’s surreal. It’s just incredible. To come out here and not play our best game and just fight through it, it shows the camaraderie and brotherhood that we’ve built. It’s just a testament to all the hard work we put into it.
I was in the blitz. They pulled a few guys over to me, so I had to set the edge, and then I had to cast to the back to finish it off. It was a mix of, I forget who the first contact was, but it was Romano, Mason, me and Hunter came in late. It was just a group effort.
It was incredible. It felt so good. The fans were incredible. The student section walked across the field to stay with us, and there were plenty of moments in that game where they could have bowed out, but they didn’t. It just means the world to us.
It’s great because we’re just a group that works really hard. We are below average. We fail the eye test. The coaches bred us to play hard and use our influence to our advantage. It just means so much that we can claim that moment.
On Unity
It doesn’t get any better than that. They are a great team that is well coached. We have our hands full, but we are excited about the opportunity and the challenge. I trust our coaches. I trust that our fans will show up. We will do our best to get the job done.
Ike Jong
I was stuck with one of their receivers, so I didn’t pay too much attention to the flight. I looked back and saw my teammates packing him up, so it was a great moment.
It was a great moment. There were tears just because our season is still alive and we’re still going.
This week has been great. It all goes back to our community. Our community has been amazing and showed so much support that helps us keep going.
Called back on TD pass
We have 18 seniors, so we have great leadership on this team. We know we can hold our heads high. When such difficult times arise, we are ready.